Framing Your People

"Will you take our picture?" the hopeful people ask you while they are
on vacation. By shooting with the proper framing, you can really make
their day! (Of course, they probably won't even realize it, but you can
rest well assured of a job well-done.)

Generally speaking, for shots against backdrops, you'll want the
subject's heads in a line one third of the distance from the top of the
frame. If the heads are centered, there is often too much sky in the
shot.

If there is something of note in the background that the people are
standing in front of, consider giving it more space in the frame, too.
For instance, put the people on the right side of the frame, and the
Leaning Tower of Pisa on the left.

So you have the subject's head at the top third of the photograph... now
where do you cut them off? At the torso? Waist? Feet? It depends on
what you want. If you want to show their face, then torso-up is good,
because their face will dominate the photo. If you want to show them in
relation to their surroundings, you might zoom back. For instance, if
your subject is standing next to an elephant, you might want to zoom
back all the way so their entire body is in shot, just for a size
comparison!

If the subject is smartly dressed, and you want to draw attention to
what they are wearing, consider turning the camera vertically so that
you can photograph more of their outfit and keep it aligned with the
frame.

Another general guideline for framing: leave empty space
(photographers call this "negative space") on the part of the frame your
subject is facing. This is more of a guideline than a
rule—pushing your subject up against the edge of the frame can
have its own positive effect in certain cases. Be artistic!

If you don't get it right in the shot, don't worry! You can always crop
the photograph later in Photoshop.